Suspicions that extremists are looking for ways to cause violence within Nevada communities have reportedly been confirmed by the arrest of three suspected members of the “boogaloo” movement in Las Vegas.
The boogaloo movement is an organized American far-right extremist movement, whose members, often referred to as boogaloo boys, identify as a libertarian citizen-militia. The name is believed to have come from the break-dancing 1984 film “Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo.” Review-Journal notes that the movement has no national leaders but uses social media as the way of organizing and recruiting.
According to Joanna Mendelson, associate director of the Center on Extremism for the Anti-Defamation League, the arrest of the suspected members is the first in America of any “Boogaloo” movement affiliates accused of orchestrating harm to the Black Lives Matter protests.
“Extremists see the civil unrest as an opportunity to incite terror and distract from the critical messages of the protesters,” she said. “The alleged plot of this trio illustrates our concerns about extremists using the momentum and societal turmoil to bring their agendas to fruition.”
Several experts believe the far-right extremist movement has been given a chance to expand through the current protests advocating for justice in the killing of George Floyd. Floyd was an unarmed man killed by police officers who used excessive force while detaining him for arrest. This has created worry around the country, including in Nevada, where U.S. Attorney Nicholas Trutanich has voiced his concerns on the recent protests on the streets.
“Violent instigators have hijacked peaceful protests and demonstrations across the country, including Nevada, exploiting the real and legitimate outrage over Mr. Floyd’s death for their own radical agendas,” Trutanich said.
An analyst states that the extremists are paving the way for themselves to be implemented into a bigger political conversation. She has even seen over 100 boogaloo groups on social media. Reports have also mentioned that extremists are preparing themselves for a forthcoming second American civil war, which they have already labeled as the “Boogaloo.”
“While boogaloo supporters hail from a variety of movements and include some white supremacists, who advocate for [a] race war, preliminary findings show the three arrested in Las Vegas embraced the anti-government version of the boogaloo.
She added:
“This strain champions the notion that the American people are willing to respond with violence — even if it means sparking a civil war — to perceived government efforts to curtail their freedom.”
Mendelson notes that she doesn’t put the blame on the protest violence just on extremists.
“Some of the chaos is an expression of the protesters’ despair and anger against what they perceive as institutionalized racism and inequality,” she said. “There is a genuine outrage and pain that’s being expressed at these demonstrations.”
President of the Las Vegas branch of the NAACP, Roxann McCoy, also believes that the anger that is being displayed around the world is real.
“I do not condone the violence,” she said. “But we are tired of just standing by and waiting for someone to do the right thing for the African-American community. Justice should matter for all people.”
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